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US-Philippines... Just received today! (Big Pix)
ecos
Posts: 391 ✭
I am pretty new to the US-Phil series, but I find it an amazing run of coins. I have picked up a few here and there. These are my two biggest purchases so far. Feel free to post a pick of your favorite US-Phil coin!
1903-S 10 Centavo
1903 Proof 20 Centavo
Thanks for checking them out!
1903-S 10 Centavo
1903 Proof 20 Centavo
Thanks for checking them out!
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My OmniCoin Collection
My BankNoteBank Collection
Tom, formerly in Albuquerque, NM.
Shep
It's obviously uncirculated. Just look at the wonderful detail on Lady Liberty's hair. And you can see all 5 toes on her left foot and all five fingers of her right hand. Great detail on Mt Mayon, and strong stippling on the anvil's stand. A real beaut.
Ditto for the reverse, where you have full chest feathers on the eagle, where the wear shows first, so again, it's an unc back as well as front.
Yes, there's cabinet friction on the obverse, along Lady Liberty's thigh and Mound of Venus, but my guess -- and it's a guess, from a scan -- is that it would go for (at least) MS61 or 62 at PCGS. Assuming it does, you've found a coin worth several thousand.
And yes, they are a really beautiful series of coins, just beginning to come into their own. I think the collectors who start going after them now are going to be making many finds like this ... picking up multi-thousand dollar coins for a tenth (or less) of their true value. Congratulations Ecos.
And thank you Old Shep! It startling to hear me described as an "expert."
Warm regards,
Just Having Fun
Justhavingfun you have made my day (Week, month, year)!!!
Thank you and everyone else for your comments!
09/07/2006
<< <i>It startling to hear me described as an "expert." >>
...but, why should it?
And ecos! Congrats on the nice 03-S!
Maybe you're the Young Arthur to knock the mighty JHF from his lofty perch on Mt. Mayon, but somehow I don't think he would mind.....much....well, maybe a bit!
One of the great glories of the US Philippine series is that most of the local dealers in the US have some US Philippine coins, usually hanging on their walls in flips. If you just continue go in and browse 'em, you will find many selling for $10 to $50, worth $100, $200, and an occasional one in the four figures. You're not going to retire on the money, but it's always a thrill to make a find like that.
And thank you MacCrimmon! About some young Arthur on his steed dethroning me from my Mt Mayon: In the proofs, that's do-able and I'd love to see it happen. It would mean someone was putting mega bucks into the series, and that of course would make me happy.
In the business strikes, it will be murder to duplicate what I did. I was very lucky to be in the right place -- the Philippines -- at the right time(just as these coins were coming into their own), at a time when I was beginning to have a lot of spare cash in my pocket. I bought up much great material very cheaply. I think to build a set of business strikes comparable to mine, today, will take many years and much, much more money than I paid out.
And those "many years" is a reality. If you have say, $50,000, you could complete a nice MS 62/63 Mercury Dime collection in a month. That's Grey Sheet prices. The coins are all there, readily available, including the 1916-D and 42/1.
By contrast, take those same dollars and try to build a 10 centavo collection in similar condition, and my guess it that it would take three to five years -- the coins are just not available. They're not expensive, but they're not available. And the coin that Ecos found is one of those rare beauts of a coin that just is not available.
So for instance, the April 2005 Pop Report shows that only a puny 4 1903-S ten centavo coins have been graded unc (all grades of unc). Matt's would be the fifth. Compare that with the 1916-D Mercury -- which sells for many, many times more -- even though PCGS has graded about 2,300 16-D Merc's unc. That's why it's a long, multi-year project to try to build an unc set of business strikes in any of the denominations (except the 2-coin half-centavo series).
Warm regards to both of you,
Just Having Fun
P.S. You position me as the "establishment" in US-Philippines. To me, it's just the opposite. There IS an establishment in US-Philippines, and while I won't name names, I ain't part of it. I built my collection by making an end-run around them. I avoided them -- I consider them a swarmy crew. Instead, I went direct to the dealers and collectors in the Philippines, and to one or two of the decent dealers for the US-Philippines that I found here in America.
Congratulations Ecos on a great find, those are very, very beautiful coins!
And, I absolutely agree with you guys on who the Philippines expert on the boards is...he is also my very good friend and mentor, the tunnel-visioned fanatic Justhavingfun
Warm regards to everyone,
TaiNoHenka
Thank you for your comments on these coins.
You have a great mentor; JHF has offered me invaluable advice.
MacCrimmon: Although I have many collecting years ahead of me, I think JHF's US-Phil collection will stand the test of time. I will give it my best shot though!
Great coins, Ecos!
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." -Luke 11:9
"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might." -Deut. 6:4-5
"For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; He will save us." -Isaiah 33:22
Be sure to share your US-Phil finds with us.
I love those sovereignty-era coins.
Pretty impressive photography, too. At first I thought there was a bit of rim chatter on the 10-centavo piece, until I realized I was seeing the reeds on the edge!
You have some real eye candy, there.
For many years now, Mr. Tai No Henko has been the the guy to bid for me in the Philippine auctions, when I couldn't attend. So he's directly responsible for some of my real coup's in the US Philippines series, including two famous ultra rarities ...
-- a 1920 GOLD Wilson Dollar (mintage 5),
-- and the 1903-S 50 centavo, one of the only two known.
He's visiting me right now in Bangkok, having a lot of fun looking over my collection out here. In our spare time, we try to think of ways to get into mischief (alas, not suceeding as often as we might want )
Warm regards,
Just Having Fun
I certainly will MacCrimmon